UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday the meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's annual ministerial meeting, which starts on 24th September, will highlight the needs in the region and the response needed from governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and academic institutions.

Dujarric said Ban discussed "the need to urgently scale up international efforts to combat the Ebola outbreak" with US President Barack Obama in a phone conversation on Monday.

The World Health Organization released figures on Tuesday showing that a surge in new cases in Liberia has driven up the number of people believed to be infected with Ebola to more than 4,200.